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Veteran center Chris Kaman, who was lumped into the L.A. Clippers' blockbuster Chris Paul trade as a throw-in back in December, is now apparently staying put as a New Orleans Hornet. Kaman had been the subject of trade rumors for weeks, but Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski says Kaman is staying in NOLA past this afternoon's trade deadline.

Kaman was originally unhappy coming off the bench in New Orleans as the backup to Emeka Okafor, but as knee injuries have sidelined Okafor for the last month, Kaman has started and been very productive as the Hornets' center. Kaman has 11 double-doubles in his last 19 games, and he's upped his season averages to 12.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.

A lot of teams had expressed interest in Kaman, who's a former All-Star and still only 29. The Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers were most notably in the hunt, while Miami, Houston, Utah and San Antonio were also at one point rumored.

Instead, it appears Kaman will stick it out with the Hornets, who sit dead last in the Western Conference at 10-33. His $14 million contract comes off the books this summer, though, so the big man will be free to explore other options for 2012-13.